(Use a large bar glass.)
3 or 4 lumps of broken ice;
1 wine glass of brandy;
1 bottle of plain soda water;
mix well with a spoon, but attention must be paid not
to let the mixture spread over the glass. This is a very
delicious drink in summer.

Medium sized glass. A little lemon juice, a little cracked
ice, a good drink of whiskey; fill up with seltzer; stir slightly;
serve.
Brandy, Holland gin, Tom gin, or Scotch whiskey are used
also in making High Balls.

(Use a medium size fizz glass.)
Mix as follows:
2 or 3 lumps of clear crystal ice;
1 wine glass of Scotch whiskey;
Fill up a glass with ice-cold syphon vichy; if cus-
tomer requires whiskey, gin, brandy or highball, you
must then use the liquor accordingly.

1900 James C. Maloney: The 20th Century Guide For Mixing Fancy Drinks. Seite 32. High Ball.

Put in a high ball glass one piece of ice, then
place the bottle of liquor to the customer, allow-
ing him to help himself ; after pouring in the liquor
fill up the glass with seltzer or any water the cus-
tomer may desire.
This is sometimes called a Bradley Martin.

Whiskey and seltzer served in a long thin glass is known by both of the
above appellations. A Scotch High Ball is Scotch whiskey and seltzer, etc., etc.

1902 Anonymus: Fancy Drinks. Seite 22. Brandy and Soda.

LARGE BAR GLASS. — 1/4 glass broken ice, one
wineglass brandy. Let customer fiil up with plain
soda. This is a fine summer drink and might be
called a „Brandy High Ball.“

1903 Tim Daly: Daly’s Bartender’s Encyclopedia. Seite 44. High Ball.

Use a fizz glass.
1 or 2 small lumps of ice.
1 wine glass of Plymouth gin.
Fill the glass with ice cold syphon seltzer.
If customer requires whiskey or brandy,
mix in the same manner.
This, without doubt, is the blue ribbon
long drink in which an alcoholic fluid is a
factor.

Use a high ball glass.
2 small lumps of ice.
1 wine glass of Royal Scotch whiskey.
Twist the rind of a lemon and fill the
glass with seltzer, and serve with a spoon.
Use nothing but Royal Scotch whiskey in
mixing this drink.

1904 John Applegreen: Applegreen’s Barkeeper’s Guide or How to Mix Drinks. Seite 25. High Balls.

Whisky High Ball
Use a medium size thin glass, into which put
a small round piece of ice, and a small bar spoon.
Let your customer help himself with rye or
bourbon whisky, then fill the glass with siphon
seltzer, or apollinaris water , or use ginger ale if
customer prefers it.

David Embury beschreibt sehr schön, daß es keine Eindeutigkeit und Einigkeit darüber gäbe, was ein Highball sei. Er kommt jedoch zu dem Schluß, daß ein Highball ein geeißtes Getränk sei, daß mit einem alkoholischen oder alkoholfreien Basisgetränk in Kombination mit einem kohlensäurehaltigen Getränk, mit oder ohne zusätzliche Farb- und Aromastoffe zubereitet werde. Definitiv gehöre kein Zitronen- oder Limettensaft in einen Highball, denn dann werde das Getränk ein Buck, Collins, Rickey oder Fizz; es sei dann definitif kein Highball mehr: „In an effort to start a movement for the purpose of bringing some semblance of order out of chaos, however, let us define a Highball as any tall iced drink (6 ounces or more) consisting of a base liquid (alcoholic or non-alcoholic) in combination with a carbonated beverage and with or without auxiliary coloring and flavoring agents, but definitely without lemon or lime juice. If citrus juices are used the drink becomes a Buck or a Collins or a Rickey and is no longer a Highball. … The Bucks, the Rickeys, the Collinses, and the Fizzes all differ from the Highball in that they contain citrus juice, whereas the Highball does not. It is easier, however, to distinguish them from the Highball than it is to distinguish them from one another.“[15] Hätte man dieses Prinzip verstanden, könne man zahlreiche interessante Variationen eines Highballs herstellen, indem man ein wenig Likör oder Bitter hinzufüge: „As a matter of fact, you can also create many interesting variations of your other Highballs by adding a few dashes of either a liqueur or bitters.“[15]